Weyerbacher Fireside Ale

Brewed by Weyerbacher Brewing Co.
Style: Smoked
Easton, Pennsylvania USA

Bottle generously donated for my education from one of the overpacked coolers at hellbilly’s 5th of July shindig. Pours amber in color with a trim oatmeal head. Smells and tastes just like a Scottish Ale with the addition of smoke in place of peat. Heavy on the barley. Not bad.

dark brown body with coppery amber hues and a soft off white head. there are some sluggish drips of lace around. the aroma is sweet, grainy and slightly sour from the smokiness. the flavor is like a glass of smoked raisins in barley water... slight smokiness mixes with raisins, flowers, molasses and a mild pepper spicy finish. the medium body has a creamy texture but acidity cuts right through it. not much going on in this one. 6/3/6/3/14/3.2

hazy reddish brown with mild white head, not very attractive. mild nose of malt.. little hop bitterness, then some low crystal sweetness followed by some raison-like crystal flavor before just mild smokiness. little hop flavor, some yeast esters with a fairly dry finish. not very smokey and not very flavorful, had some oxidation, but still can’t imagine this being very good

Pours a deep plum colour with ruby edges and a thin, but lasting beige head, fading to a sudsy film. The nose is floral, lightly smoky and has impressions of earthy malts, toasted nuts and a hint of chocolate. The flavour is nutty and smokey, with a fruity tang and peppery spice in the finish. Some warming from the alcohol is evident upon the first sip. It plays out like an imperial smoked brown ale. The hopping provides a nice balancing bitterness that is well matched, though this overall hodgepodge of flavours is a bit strange. The palate is slick and medium bodied, and it is especially syrupy toward and through the finish. Meh, it’s ok.

12oz bottle poured into a tulip. Pours a deep, clear copper that sits dark brown in the glass with a creamy off-white head that lingers as a ring of creamy bubbles for the duration and leaves only the faintest trace of lacing. Man, I love the smell of a good smoked beer and this definitely fits the bill with a smoked hickory and summer sausage dominating the aroma. The sweet caramel malts are present but definitely in the background. The taste is a little less heavy on the smoked meat and has a more prevalent caramel malt character. Most of the smoke comes out in the finish and lingers for a while after each sip. The mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with a soft carbonation and a smoked wood dryness. I’m a big fan of smoked beers and this is a fairly basic but very good example. It’s very, very drinkable for the style as the smoke is certainly not overpowering, especially in the taste.

Not a smoked. Can’t be. It just can’t be. Poured amber with a white head. Aroma of caramel. Sweet malt flavor with a hint of fruit. Finish dry. Drank pretty good but no smke or meat.

12oz Bottle. Aroma gives a cast of peaty, dark gray smoke and some burning embers, subtle, lightly pork fatty and a touch salty. The malt of a brown ale edges through. Not bad. Pours a murky darkish brown, with a good finger in tan head. Flavor starts really thin and watery, with some biting metallic bitterness, overbearing Weyerbacher house yeast and some almonds. But, then it moves towards a harsher, eye-watering smoke, a bit of smoked almonds, and a nip of bacon. Finishes with a suprisingly fresh and leafy hop character. Mediocre, as smoked beers go.

12 oz. bottle. Pours slightly hazy orange-brown, with a tan head. Aroma of roasted malts, nuts, brown sugar and some spice. Rather dry flavor includes roasted malt, cola and a bitter, hoppy finish with barely a hint of smoke. Medium bodied and nice on the palate with moderately high, fine carbonation. Overall, nothing extraordinary but a fine winter warmer.